AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Every morning when my eyes opened, I prayed I’d find this nightmare over—nothing more than a bad dream that left me shaken but otherwise unharmed.
Sadly,devastatingly, the actual dreams were the ones that warmed me while I slept. The ones where my mates—Jamison, Thane, Eli, Knox, Leo, and Hades—were with me.
It was hard to wake and realize nothing had changed. I was here. In this empty room. Alone, save for whatever Beta babysitters were on duty, rotating in and out at set intervals.
I couldn’t bring myself to contemplate what it meant that my men hadn’t found me yet. Could I be that hard to find? Ferreted away in some underground bunker somewhere? Or was it possible that—
I swallowed, my throat tightening so fast it was like I was having an allergic reaction to the stale air. The anxiety that lived within me spiked at the thought Irefusedto allow myself to think. And, yet, I couldn’t ignore the terror clawing at my chest or the awful reality I had to face.
The accident. The crumpled SUV. The guys’ unconscious, bleeding bodies as I’d been dragged away from them….
It was possible that my mates were dead.
Pure agony stabbed through me, the grief so thick and consuming it was a miracle I choked back the sob that threatened to break free.
Not now. Not in front of your enemies.
The torrent of emotion building inside me deserved more respect than to be released beforethem. They didn’t deserve my tears. My fear.
But theydiddeserve my anger.
Lucky for them, I had rage in spades. It built in my muscles like lactic acid, every part of my being demanding revenge for all the things they’d done. The time I’d never get back. The mates they hadstolen. And all for what? Greed? An inability to let go of someone they viewed as their property?
It made no sense. I wouldn’t wish Pack Silver on my worst enemy, but the facts remained the same. Anton, Huck, and Reed were attractive, wealthy, and politically connected. There were bound to be Omegas at the OMA who would line up to become theirs. Yet, they’d bought me—under the table—and refused to let me go.
I didn’t understand it. Honestly, there was nothing special about me. Sure, I was pretty enough. I came from an upstanding family, and I had a pleasant scent that clearly appealed to Pack Silver. However, the same could be said of hundreds of other Omegas.
What did they get out of whatever deal my father had struck when he sold me off? I was missing key puzzle pieces, which irritated me as I sat alone in this stuffy room with only my thoughts for company.
Another week passed in much the same vein. Guards came in and out with meals. The cuts and gashes that littered my skin continued to heal, and the shoulder I’d dislocated in the crash—set by Anton’s personal physician after the fact—ached a little less each day. The dangers of my concussion were past, and while I remained weak, some of that was my fault from lack of nutrition. I’d finally had to cave and eat enough of the food that arrived like clockwork to keep up my health. It tasted like ash in my mouth, chewed and swallowed purely for sustenance.
I was curled in a ball on the mattress, my fingers playing over the fringe at the edge of the sheet that marked my imprisonment, when the distant clang of metal doors echoed faintly. A cry that sounded feminine followed it. I’d heard it before, and I sat up swiftly and hurried across the room on shaking legs. I sank to the ground, pressing my ear against the cool surface of the wall, listening for signs of life.
Throughout my captivity, I’d wondered if I was truly alone. Anton, Huck, and Reed hadn’t returned since that first day, and while that was a blessing, it was also a curse. I had more questions than answers, and desperation had officially set in. I felt like a patient in an insane asylum, locked away in near solitary. It was enough to make me stir-crazy. Was I hallucinating? Had I finally cracked?
I barely heard the sound of footsteps before Doctor Jenkins unlocked my door and walked in. It swung shut with an ominous thud as I scrambled against the wall.
“Ah, Mrs. Fenway,” he greeted sternly in lieu of a smile or any form of friendly bedside manner. “Please, sit.”
“Go to hell,” I spat, content to stay where I was.
“Suit yourself.” He wrenched open his medical bag and procured a vial and syringe. A ball of lead formed in my stomach and it churned in warning, threatening to upend the meager few bites of food I’d eaten.
Cowed and frustrated, I clenched my teeth and forced myself off the floor. Moving woodenly, I took a seat at the table.
“Smart choice.” The doctor smirked in victory, but the expression was there and gone in an instant. Reaching into his bag, he pulled out a file folder and slapped it down on the tabletop before me.
I stared at it, then blinked up at him, refusing to take the bait and open it. Whatever was inside wouldn’t be good news, whether it was about me or my mates. Anton was too vindictive to expect anything else. And if it was about the men who were meant to be mine…. My lungs twisted, fighting me with every breath I took.
I just couldn’t look.
Instead, I held onto the images of them smiling and happy the morning after my heat, when all of us were together and excited about our future.
“Aren’t you the least bit curious about what’s inside?” Doctor Jenkins prodded, a bushy grey eyebrow raising in question.
“I figure if it’s important enough, you’re going to tell me anyway.” I shrugged, expression as bland as the food they served.
His eyes crinkled in the corners as he narrowed them. “Your test results. Nothing I didn’t suspect when your pack recovered you from your little…excursion.” He flipped open the folder and pointed to what looked like lab results. “Proof that you, my darling, clearly went through your heatwithoutyour Alphas. Your blood draw revealed elevated hormone levels, which were unsurprising given you weredrenchedin the scent of other men when you were rescued.”
